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A customer wants to use one of the pre-finished wood flooring systems. Originally it was going to be “Pergo”, then they started seeing ads for a new product made by Armstrong, which seems very similar to “Pergo”, but has an interlocking joining system instead of gluing the tongue and groove. Regardless of what your personal views of this type of product versus solid wood flooring is, we ultimately have to give the customer what they want. I have never worked with either of these products, so any information on either would be greatly appreciated. Thanks, Steve
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we've done two installations.. one with 12x12 and one with plank.. the 12 x 12 went together great.. no joints visible.. then you come back and they're all a little open.. just enough so you can see if you look close.. stay away from light colored patterns.. the dirt will show every mini-joint
.. we took a LOT of care laying a square pattern.. so it wasn't that...
the plank products give a better appearance... go together easier.. and are more forgiving with the mini-micro joints....
again stay with patterns that will hide any micro-imperfections...you'll sleep better..
b but hey, whadda i no ?
*I have been involved in laying a few thousand sq. ft of Pergo. Strip style. Personally I didn't care for the finished product... oh yea... no opinions. The one think I will say is that it helps immensely to have the special tools. We also used underlayment especially designed to go with the product. I wouldn't recommend it for kitchen or baths, etc. where it could be subjected to significant amounts of water. One customer had a washer leak in her new house and then wanted us to do something about it as if it were a warranty item.Also, Pergo has a commercial grade of flooring, which is significantly more durable - read no chips!
*I've seen a couple of Pergo floors and the smaller rooms seem to hide the seams better. Longer runs of boards in a bigger area tend to show the seams more-and just wait till the sunlight hits it along the run and you can see each plank!!No thanks, I'm gonna use wood.
*Just finished a snap together laminate floor today. Went together in no time. First job I did with this stuff the customer wanted the wide plank style. (pattern ran the full width) While the patterns, (print), changed with each piece, maybe 7 patterns total, the color did not. Each piece went from light to dark. All twenty feet of it. I just won't do it again unless they beg. The patterns that mimic strip flooring are the way to go. It blends together must better.No glue, no water barrier. Any over watered plants, bath, and/or kitchen I'd say no. At least some product bonded on the edges.I Wouldn't trust any laminate if there is any side to side stress, i.e. gym floors or the like. Our TKD gym floor is Armstrong and the glued joints are poppin' apart all the time. Just glue and wait, glue and wait.Take the companys' advise and use their vapor barrier/foam pads and if glueing buy some of those suction cup clamp gizmos.Good luck,David
*I'm not a builder, just a housewife evesdropping on you guys, but I've got an opinion on laminate flooring. I know two homeowners with the stuff (different top brands), and neither one happy with it.One had a dishwasher overflow, and the flooring popped up and had to be replaced. The other has a new home with several large rooms of laminate flooring. It seems to be shrinking. The builder doesn't accept responsibility,and the manufacturer blames the installer. She is planning to sue!
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Thanks for the input. I've installed only one small floor of this type and the customers decided not to use any more of it. I will relay your feed-back to any others that inquire about lamanant flooring.
*Steve has a good point,though. When it comes to design and style, the customer does have the final say so.
*Hey Matt,Have you ever installed wilson art flootin floor tiles? Have have a job (my wifes new house)and she wants this bad. The subfloor is 3/4 t & g it swelled a little from rain, so the joints poped up. We have belt sanded them back down so it is almost flat. Do i need to put 1/4 luan down to get a better surface to work with? The carpet stores have a section done and it feels stange walking on it. Have any customers complained about this?
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I did a DIY Pergo project several years ago for a dining room and hallway and hallway closet.
I broke some rules and glued up the entire area as one floating unit instead of dividing up into separate sections "connected" by their metal transition channels. The result was very satisfying and clean.
Meticulous preparation of the floor is necessary to prevent any bounciness and dips and bumps as the flooring will transmit any imperfections, however small. (I had to remove one section of subfloor and chisel off a section of joist to get rid of a slight hump.)
Another factor to consider is when it is owner installed the application of glue can be more thorough so it reaches the edges when pressed together.
It is possible a paid installer could run the glue bottle along the channels in a fast production like manner and sometimes "short" some sections of glue.
(It is better to slightly over apply the glue and wipe off the excess when the boards are pressed together and perhaps this final wipe step is being avoided ?)
Properly prepared and installed it is a great product.
I know of one house where this stuff is intalled in the entrance hallway and it has taken a beating with stride.
Does it feel like hardwood flooring ?
Ofcourse not.
But we shouldn't compare apples and oranges as this stuff does have a place in many homes under the right circumstances.
(They do warn against installing it in moisture prone areas, by the way.)
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I installed Pergo last summer in dining room/kitchen.Maybe 400 square feet total, including stairs. I followed their video and read one or two FH articles on the stuff. The folks who have had dishwashers leak and ruin the flooring obviously did not have it installed correctly. The Pergo folks say to caulk all seams around dishwasher/kitchen sink. I ignored their advice (my wife likes to over water plants and had ruined the subflooring in one section) and caulked the seam around the whole perimiter with 50 year silicone RTV. I had my 9 year old mop the floor the other day only to come up and see 1/8-1/16inch of standing water on the whole surface. No problem/no buckles.
I did have to do extensive subfloor prep, including bracing the floor from the basement as I had 1/4 deflection in the middle of the kitchen over 8 foot run. I installed (glued and screwed) 1/4 sub floor over the old stuff and used pergo's wisper walk underlayment.
As for durability. I have 115 pound malamute, two little kids and a sand driveway. The dog dislikes (alot) having his nails trimed, the kids are kids (so is dad) and the stuff looks perfect. The only chips have come from dropping a filet knive directly into the material.
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A customer wants to use one of the pre-finished wood flooring systems. Originally it was going to be "Pergo", then they started seeing ads for a new product made by Armstrong, which seems very similar to "Pergo", but has an interlocking joining system instead of gluing the tongue and groove. Regardless of what your personal views of this type of product versus solid wood flooring is, we ultimately have to give the customer what they want. I have never worked with either of these products, so any information on either would be greatly appreciated. Thanks, Steve